“When I was younger, I thought about the future of mankind. The problems we would face, and how we could overcome them. Do you know what conclusion I came up with?”

I kept silent as it wasn’t a question I could answer. Great men like Professor Wang could change humankind with their imagination. I wasn’t in the same league. I am just a Battlesuit Designer.

“Science.” The professor said. “Everything starts and ends with science. Everything can be solved with science. You are too young to remember how things were just a hundred years ago. There was overpopulation, our megacities were overcrowded, and even the air we breathe was polluted. I believed that all these problems could be solved with enough science. I dedicated my youth and adult life to it, and you know what I discovered?”

I thought for a bit before deciding to keep my consul, mainly because I don’t have any. I had no idea where the professor was going with this.

“I was wrong. I thought science would solve everything, but that was just the naivety of youth talking.”

“Sorry sir, but didn’t science, or at least the beginning of the Space Age solved most of those problems.” I asked.

Professor Wang gave me his creepy smile again and agreed. “Oh yes. Science solved many issues. We set up colonies on other planets and let the corporations run them as they will. We ship out our undesirables to the colonies to solve our overpopulation, and let the corporations treat them like indentured slaves. However, there are some problems science can’t solve. Human greed, for example. Billionaires who would skirt the law just to squeeze that last few dollars out of their workers. Mega-corporations who would put their employees in danger just so their quarterly report would look that little bit better. Science can’t solve human nature, and greed is natural.”

“So, in my old age, I changed my view. Science isn’t the most important thing for mankind. It is life.” The professor said. “Everything starts and ends with life. Without life, I have nothing. If I am not alive, I can’t solve anything. To help our species, for the good of mankind, I need to live. I was not alone. I worked with some of the giants of our age in pursuit of this. Some of them had less than stellar reputations, but that was a trade-off I was willing to make. For the past few decades of my life, I have redirected my focus to this. To find a way to stay alive, and if possible, to live forever. Mr. Wong, you had just given me another avenue in my pursuit of immortality. Thank you.”

The professor didn’t say anything else and he didn’t need to. I looked at the man and realized an uncomfortable fact. The man was scared. He didn’t create Forever Life for the good of mankind; he did it for himself. He was so afraid of death, he wanted to live forever. I didn’t know what was worse. The fact that one of the greatest minds of our age is crazy, or that he had succeeded.

“I’m happy to help.” Following the professor’s tirade, I could do nothing but smiled politely. I saw a waiter with a tray of champagne and waved him over. The professor was apologetic.

“Oh, I’m sorry. I forgot about the refreshments. You see, I don’t really need to drink anymore.”

I smiled at the professor’s poor attempt of a joke as the waiter came over. The waiter arrived and bended over. I was about to take a glass of champagne when something kicked in. An instinct I never had before told me something was wrong. I didn’t know what to make of it. Then I saw the waiter’s eyes. They were different. They were determined. A determined waiter? Why would-

My hand moved as the gun appeared. It swung towards the professor. My cybernetic hand covered the muzzle as the gun fired. I felt a sharp pain as the muffled sound of the shot echoed in the banquet hall. The waiter stared at me in horror. I stared right back. He didn’t expect me to stop his attempt on Professor Wang, and honestly, neither did I. He tried to pull back, but I still had a firm grip on the gun. A red laser appeared, and the waiter staggered. He looked down. I looked down. There was a hole in his chest. I stared, and in the back of my mind, I realized I could see through the man. Literally. It was … revolting?

It should be, but it wasn’t. I wasn’t revolted by the sight. I was excited! Then, I felt the heat in my other hand. I looked further down and saw that my other hand was opened. The hand that had the Heat Palm installed. The waiter fell backwards, and I finally heard the screams around me.

I had just killed a man.

Something hit me from the side. I was pushed to the ground and heard someone shouting something about staying down. Professor Wang huddled beside me as I looked around. I realized that I was surrounded. The professor’s bodyguards had formed a circle around us and all of them had metallic shields. Shields that were currently being peppered with bullets.

The assassin wasn’t alone.

The smart thing to do was to stay down and let the professionals handed the matter. As proof of my current insanity, I elected to get up. I wanted to use the shields as cover and fight back. I didn’t need to.

I looked over the shields and saw Salma with a dead man at her feet. Both her Bromium blades were drawn, and they were dripping blood. Two other assassins, one of them a woman, were dead. A four-man team. The waiter was the triggerman, while the others were the backups. Their target was the professor, and none of the assassins were near an exit. So, either they had an exit plan that I couldn’t see, or they didn’t have one. A suicide squad! Looks like the professor really ruffled some feathers with that presentation of his. This hit couldn’t be from the megacorporation or the governments. It must be from one of the other players. Maybe someone fighting for the poor, or one of those equality groups? Hell, it could even one of those crazy pure humanity groups.

“Wait a minute…”

How do I know all this? What the hell was wrong with me?